NEWS

Students suspended for 'racist' tweets after Bruins game

Comments directed at Montreal's P.K. Subban

Updated: 1:44 PM EDT May 10, 2014

Advertisement

Advertisement

Share

Copy Link

{copyShortcut} to copy
Link copied!

AP Photo/Elise Amendola

Montreal Canadiens' P.K. Subban follows through on his game-winning goal in the second overtime period against the Boston Bruins in Game 1 of an NHL hockey second-round playoff series in Boston, Thursday, May 1, 2014. The Canadiens won 4-3.

SOURCE: AP Photo/Elise Amendola

Students suspended for 'racist' tweets after Bruins game

Comments directed at Montreal's P.K. Subban

Updated: 1:44 PM EDT May 10, 2014

Share

Copy Link

{copyShortcut} to copy
Link copied!

HAVERHILL, Mass. —

Two local high school students have been suspended for making racist comments on Twitter after a Boston Bruins playoff game, a school official says.

Advertisement

The Eagle Tribune reports that two Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School students were suspended for a week for racist tweets believed to be directed at Montreal Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban, who is black and scored the winning goal against Boston in the series opener. One of the students tweeted a picture of a noose, an official told The Eagle Tribune.

"As a school district, we don't tolerate any kind of behavior like that," Whittier Superintendent William DeRosa told The Eagle Tribune. "They posted information from home, and to the best of my knowledge, they aren't friends and it appears they did this independently following last Thursday night's Bruins game."

CBC News in Canada, citing Montreal media monitoring and analysis company Influence Communications, said the N-word and Subban's name were used in conjunction with 17,000 tweets Thursday.

"The racist, classless views expressed by an ignorant group of individuals following Thursday's game via digital media are in no way a reflection of anyone associated with the Bruins organization," Boston Bruins President Cam Neely said in a statement after Game 1.

The students will meet with school officials Monday, and DeRosa told The Eagle Tribune that he wants the students to show that it won't happen again.

"And we're looking hopefully for a level of remorse," he said.

DeRosa said he's not legally allowed to name the students.

"The only thing I can say is that we interpreted their [tweets] as racist comments, and when they were interviewed they said it had to do with Subban," DeRosa told The Eagle Tribune.